So I Tried… Split/Second

Each edition of So I Tried… I will try a game that I have never tried before. Will I find something new to love? Will I find something new to despise? I'll take a full half hour, no matter how bad it gets or how badly I do, to see if this is the game for me. This time I went for the PC version of Split/Second.

What I thought it was

A racing game with explosions and destruction! I played the demo over a decade ago, and once more recently tried playing it on my phone, but I don’t recall much about it. It’s been on my wishlist for a long time, and I finally went and bought it because although I’m not a racing fan, if you include massive explosions you increase my interest!

What it actually is

You’re participating in a reality show — wait, before you stop reading! It’s a racing reality show where you have to win by any means necessary. Raise your gauge to blow up trucks, drop explosives from helicopters, cause the Seattle Space Needle to crash onto the road in front of you so that you can change the route… You know, reality show kinds of things. As well as normal races for three laps, there are elimination races (the car in last place gets blown up), and time trials. There might be more, but I ran out of time.

Will I keep playing

I took out three of my competitors by demolishing the Space Needle — yes, I’m going to keep playing! Most of the things you activate or blow up to try and take out the other racers will change how the track appears. Maybe there will be things in the way, perhaps a shortcut will be closed off, or maybe you’ll cause a passenger jet to crashland… It’s insane and I want more of this game in my life. Unfortunately, Disney closed down developer Black Rock Studio in 2011, so we’re not getting another one any time soon, and I’m not sure how quickly I’m going to rush through Split/Second.